Among the major snubs in the category is Steve James’s documentary Life Itself, which was considered a frontrunner by many critics and taste-makers. The five nominated docs were culled from a shortlist of 15 and fended off competition from films such as The Case Against 8, The Overnighters, Keep on Keepin’ On and Tales of the Grim Sleeper to secure their spots.

In the Best Documentary – Short Subject category, the five nominees are Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1, Joanna, Our Curse, White Earth and The Reaper.

This category brought a shock as well, with Lucy Walker’s Cinema Eye Honors-winning short The Lion’s Mouth Opens among the three shorts passed over by the Academy.

Finally, there was also a surprise as a documentary was recognized in the Best Original Song category, with “I’m Not Going to Miss You,” from Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me, earning a nomination.

The full list of nominated non-fiction films, with the names of the directors and producers nominated for Academy Awards, follows below:

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About The Author

Daniele Alcinii is a news reporter at realscreen, the leading international publisher of non-fiction film and television industry news and content. He joins the rs team with journalism experience following a stint out west with Sun Media in Edmonton's Capital Region, and communications work in Melbourne, Australia and Toronto. You can follow him on Twitter at @danielealcinii.